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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: land · spell · mine · chair · bowl · rest · staff · field

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. field — a subject
  3. rest — what's left
  4. spell — letters
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. land — ground
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. mine — for digging
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. rest — a break
  18. land — to come down
  19. rest — what's left
  20. spell — magic
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. chair — a leader
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. spell — a short time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com